TikTok drops appeal, agrees to pay £12.7m child data fine

TikTok has agreed to pay a £12.7 million fine to the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) after dropping its appeal.

The massive penalty was originally imposed in 2023 after TikTok’s failure to do enough to keep under-13 children off the platform and handle their data correctly. As per the regulator’s estimation, around 1.75 million UK children under-13 used the short video platform in 2020, going against the company’s rules.

Initially, TikTok appealed against an ICO information notice regarding how it processes personal data for 13-17-year-olds in its recommender systems and now it is dropped with the intention to pay the fine.

Recommender systems are used by social media platforms to profile users and recommend content based on their online activity.

Emily Keaney, ICO deputy commissioner, said, "How companies design online services and use children's personal information has a significant impact on young people's experience in the digital world.”

"Our successful action against TikTok shows how important it is for companies to have the right protections in place, including to prevent access by children who are not old enough to be using their services.”

In response, a TikTok spokesperson stated that while they disagree with the 2023 decision, it covers a historical period, May 2018–July 2020, and does not reflect current safety measures.

Earlier this month, Ireland's media regulator, Coimisiún na Meán, opened its first formal investigation into X under the Online Safety Code. The regulator is investigating X's compliance with age assurance and parental control provisions.